Master of Accounting

The Master of Accounting program is designed to meet the needs of accountants in public or private accounting focusing on interpreting and analyzing accounting information for decision-making. This program allows undergraduate accounting majors to complete an advanced degree while pursuing the additional hours needed to meet the 150 hour requirement in most states to become a Certified Public Accountant. Graduates comply with the Iowa Standards for Certification upon passing the Uniform Certified Public Accounting examination.

Applicants to the program should have a strong academic record. Requirements for admission will generally be:

GPA above a 3.25 (junior/senior GPA will be considered if better than overall)

Demonstrate strong professional communication skills through the required essays

GMAT score of at least 50th percentile*

GMAT writing of at least 4.5*

Additional factors that will be considered are:

Professional work experience including internships

Leadership experience

Strong references from professional work experience and faculty

Convincing rationale for pursuing the degree

Our Master of Accounting faculty are respected nationally and have been making a difference as editors and co-editors of the top journals in their areas of expertise. Our accounting faculty host annual training conferences for continuing education credits and provide external consulting. These external experiences provide a link for our students from the classroom to the real-world practice.

This program is designed for undergraduate accounting majors. Applicants that do not have an undergraduate accounting degree will generally have to meet the same admission requirements. If you do not have an accounting degree, you will not be admitted until you have met the required prerequisites. For more information view the Non-Accounting Majors Pursuing a MAcc PDF.

*Applicants are generally required to complete a GMAT exam. If an applicant from Iowa State University has an undergraduate GPA in the accounting major over 3.25 in both overall GPA and at least four upper level accounting classes, and no grade lower than a B in any accounting class, the GMAT requirement will be waived.